[Hand Of a scrivener:]
INFORMATION FILED AGAINST SIR MORROGH NA DOWE KNIGHT, FOR CLOTHING & BRINGING IN HIS RETINUE TO DUBLIN CERTAIN MERCHANTS OF GALWAY
Translated from the original Roll of 28th year of Queen Elizabeth, in Chief Remembrancer's Office.
Memorandum that William Sweete of the City of Dublin who as well for the Lady the Queen as for himself, sues, came before the Barons of this Exchequer the 14th day of January in the 28th year of the reign of the Lady the Queen that now is in his proper person and as well for the same Lady the Queen as for himself gave the Court here to understand & be informed that whereas by a certain Act in the Parliament held at Drogheda on Monday next before the Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle in the year of the reign of the late King Henry 7th Grandfather of our most dear Lady the Queen that now is the 10th before Edward Poynings Knt. then Deputy General of the same late King of this Kingdom of Ireland amongst other things at the humble petition of the Commons of the said Kingdom it was ordained and enacted that if thenceforth any Citizen or Free Inhabitant within any City or Town of this Kingdom should receive Livery or any wages or otherwise make promise or security by Indenture or otherwise with any Lord, Baron or Gentleman within this Kingdom of Ireland that then he or they so in the premises offending as often shall be deprived from his or their immunities or liberties And also
out of same City or Town should be expelled for ever and whereas by the authority of the same Parlt. then likewise it was ordained & enacted that if any Mayor or Chief Officer of the said City or Town for the time being should not execute the Ordnance aforesaid so often as required that then he or they should forfeit to the said Lord the King £20 and whereas further by authority of the same Parlt. it was ordained that no Lord or Gentleman of the same Kingdom should retain by livery wages or promises by Indenture or otherwise any other person or persons than such as might be his Officers as Bailiffs, seneschals - Counsellors Receivers & daily Servants in his house at his or their Cost that then such Lord or Gentleman so retaining any person contrary (to) this Act should forfeit to the Lord the King £20 and every of the persons aforesaid so by him retained another £20 as often as in the form aforesaid offending as in the act among other things more fully is contained: - Nevertheless one Morroghe Na Dowe Knight little weighing said Act or the penalties in same contained in any way fearing, long after the publishing said Act to wit between 1st April last past in the 27th year of the Queen's reign & the day of the ex[h]ibition of this information at Kilmaynam in the County Dublin retained in his
service William Martyn Anthony Lynch Fitz-Thomas, Stephen Ro French & Cornelius O'Halleran of the Town of Galway Merchants & gave to them 4 several cloaks for their livery to serve him the same Morragh Na Dowe Knight as Retayners & not otherwise against the form of the Statute aforesaid wherefore the aforesaid William Sweete as well for the said Lady the Queen as for himself seeks the advice of the Court in the Premisses and, that the aforesaid Morroghe Na Dowe Knight should forfeit £80 {viz} for every of the aforesaid of persons so by him in the form aforesaid contrary to the said Statute retained £20 and that the same William Sweete a moiety thereof may be able to have according to the form of the Statute aforesaid upon which &c
In the valuable Document written in Irish & known by the name of the "Annals of the Four Masters" is an account of the persons who came from the Irish Districts as Chieftains to attend Queen Elizabeth's Parlt. of 1585; the following are the words as to Morroghe Na Dowe
There went none worth mentioning from the Western District of the Province of Connaught except Morrogh Na Dowe son of Teige son of Morrogh son of Rory O'Flaherty.
[Hand of G. F. O'Fflahertie:]
The following extract was taken by a Gentleman from some manuscript in the British Museum but unfortunately without giving a reference -
ORDERS TO SIR NICHOLAS MALBY {WHO WAS GOVERNOR OF CONNAUGHT} FOR HIS GOVERNMENT OF CONNAUGHT -
For forwardnes and services of Sir John Burke commonly called Mc Wm. Euter, and being descended of a noble house of Englishe race, we are resolved to nobilitate him with the honor and title of an Erle during his lief and that his Eldest son shall also be a Baron and to the heires males of his body and to have estates accordingly of so much as is their own with a salvo jure to all other that have right; for performcc. whereof under or. letters patents we will send warrant to or. Justice willing you to conferre wth. the said Sir Ino Burke and his sd. sonne and heire touching the names which they like to beare in their creacons to the end it may be accomplished accordinglie - The like order we have also given for Moroughe ne doe O'flarty to be made a Baron & therefore leave to or. Justice & to you to appoint a convenient tyme & place for their appearances before hym to pformme the ceremony of their creacons.
Hardiman's History of Galway pa 89. note - orders for the better Government of the Province of Connaught to Sir Nichs. Malby Knt. - Rot. Pat. 21st Elizh. {Rolls office I think} perhaps there might be something of the above in the Roll.
It is absurd to say the Postmaster is the representative of the Gnobeg family - his father is living and is a younger son - all resident in Gnomore -
De Burgo is equally wrong about Aghnenure it never comprised Cour or Lemonfield - and he very cruelly deprives me of a Grandfather. (The last) Murrough's sons were Sir John, Thomas, Michael and Theobald his daughter Mabel.
Thomas was my Grandfather, and though there might have been other children of Murrough by the Honble Jane Bourke only the five named in the Pedigree lived, positively.
I shall make particular enquiry about Park Roderic's residence but I rather think Molyneux mistook his way and went round, or that he thought the Lake was Sea.
Of the 12 Pins or mountains of Benna Beola, the highest is called Lettera and there is on top of it a pool of standing (clear) water, in which it is believed {by fools} if any one washes his head it will become immediately hoare. My brother in law went to see the place twice, but did not make the experiment of ablution, and therefore cannot vouch for the quality of its waters.
Sir John O'Flahertie entered the Army in the 12th Regt. - purchased his Lieutenancy
in the 65th Regt. - he was one of the Party who composed, the forlorn hope at the taking of Martinique and Guadaloupe, and for his gallant conduct was rewarded with a Company, it appears to have been the intention of the Crown to confer the dignity of a Baronet on him for in the Commission appointing him a Captn. he was styled Bart. but subsequently in a Commission of the Peace dated 15th Jany. XIX G III he was styled Knight and also in his appointment to the office of Sheriff he was styled Knight - the two last appointments we have - and we have a letter from the Coll. of his Regt. directed to Sir John O'Flahertie Bart. When retiring from the army he was put on the Half Pay list as a Lieutt. (32nd Regt.) in consequence of a regulation then existing that an Officer should retire on the Rank only which he purchased, an extraordinary practice thereby making that situation more permanent which was procured by money than that which a man risked his life to obtain.
Sir John was a very unostentatious man and cared little for the title. My brother in law was so much so that he never enquired about it, nor did he take any step to confirm it.
Looking over some papers I have found a statement {which is supported with the authority of Mr. Harris and Mr. O'Connor} that Roderic O'F. was a learned and studious farmer at Park in the Barony of Moycullen, born in 1630 and died April 8th 1718, in the 89th year of his age. He was married and had issue one son and some daughters - his son died an Officer in the Austrian Service. He unjustly defrauded of his Estate in Cromwell's time being a minor when it was forfeited, and it was not restored by the act of Settlet. in 1662. - The Pedigree I have prepared from Memorandums and loose papers, but I shall send for the original and if I find occasion shall forward information for the correction of any inaccuracies.
I mention this also to account for the delay in replying to your very kind letter.
Lemonfield,